This application relates to a pressure seal having three surfaces in sliding contact, with at least one of the surfaces being provided with a non-metallic wear surface.
Gas turbine engines are known, and typically include a fan delivering air into a compressor. The air is compressed in the compressor, and delivered into a combustion section. The air is mixed with fuel in the combustion section and ignited. Products of the combustion pass downstream over turbine rotors, driving them to rotate.
There are a number of areas within a gas turbine engine where a high pressure chamber must be maintained separate from a low pressure chamber. Thus, various locations require a reliable seal.
One type of seal is a U or J-shaped seal having three sides. Two components contact two of the sides of the seal, and some form of retention member may contact a third side. The seal is generally moveable along the three surfaces.
In the past, seals in this particular application have always been formed of metallic materials. This has led to undue wear.
While non-metallic seals have been proposed for many applications, they have not been proposed in gas turbine engines between high and low pressure chambers, where a three sided sealing application is used.